Modern vehicles require accurate navigational systems. A vehicle may eliminate many dangerous unknowns by identifying exactly where the vehicle is on the road in real time, along with its immediate surroundings. A high definition (HD) map is a crucial component of assisted or automatic driving technology. Vehicles may include many sensors, but a HD map may be the most important tool vehicles use.
An HD map is needed not only to allow a vehicle to precisely position itself laterally and longitudinally, but to enable the car to maneuver correctly. While sensors in vehicles may detect objects out around 100 meters, a car traveling at 80 miles per hour only has a sensing horizon of 3 seconds. Vehicles need highly accurate and up to date maps to extend sensor range and “peek” around the corner.
Existing mapping services may use inaccurate estimates based on sets of data which are not designed to offer the precise measurements required. For example, centerline estimation may attempt a measurement of the width of a road and then just split it in two. For generalized routing, this may be adequate to offer a rough estimate of a distance from point A to point B. However, for assisted driving, errors of even a few centimeters may be hazardous.
Sensors in vehicles may be able to detect lanes and lane markings in real time using image processing and light detection and ranging (lidar) based systems. These systems are useful for obstacle avoidance and detecting the movements of other vehicles. When used alone though, on-board sensor systems may exhibit large blind spots and may be unable to predict events or maneuvers even a short distance away.
On-board sensors, however, when combined with high definition maps may allow for assisted and highly automated vehicle operation. High definition maps may allow a vehicle to identify precisely where it is with respect to the road (or the world) far beyond what the Global Positioning System can do, and without its errors. The map allows the vehicle to plan precisely where the vehicle may go, and to accurately execute that plan because the vehicle is following the map. By identifying precisely where a vehicle is on the road to the centimeter, and understanding the surroundings, a mapping system may bring advanced safety to an ever-changing environment.